The New York Giants are functioning in a weird sort of way, floating in an Eli Manning-created limbo, unable to really rebuild but also not really capable of rebooting either. This explains why they are still apparently discussing a possible Odell Beckham deal, or at least engaging in Odell Beckham trade talks.

A Friday deal between the Giants and Browns was thought to potentially have Beckham included -- and the Brown reportedly did inquire about Beckham but were rebuffed -- but it ultimately it was just a swap of guard Kevin Zietler and edge rusher Olivier Vernon between the two teams. A big deal, but not a Beckham blockbuster. 

Beckham not being part of that deal felt like it was a shore up of Dave Gettleman's comments about the Giants not being willing to trade Beckham.

According to Jeff Howe of The Athletic, however, the Giants are still out "having trade discussions" about the wide receiver.

To what extent they would actually be willing to deal Beckham is a sticking point here. We don't know if the Giants are actively shopping Beckham -- i.e. if they are trying to find someone who wants to take the wide receiver -- or if they are simply listening to teams who call and inquire.

Those are two different things, of course. 

The Giants probably are less than enthused by seeing what Antonio Brown fetched in a deal. The former Steelers wide receiver was dealt to the Raiders over the weekend for a third- and a fifth-round pick. They're hardly the same player -- Brown is going to be 31 this year and Beckham is still in his prime. Beckham has a top-end contract, but he isn't looking for any new money (Brown wanted to be paid like the top wideout on the open market and ended up getting that deal from the Raiders, making him the clear-cut big winner in that whole deal). They're both divas, but Beckham is clearly the superior asset at this point in his career. 

So the Giants would probably be willing to hear what people call up and offer, but if it's teams just peppering them with AB-like deals, you can bet that Gettleman is not engaging in extremely long telephone conversations. 

If the Giants are intent on rebuilding and focusing on making Saquon Barkley the face of the franchise and really establishing the run game, perhaps they would be interested in moving OBJ. My guess they would only do that if they can get a first-round pick in return, at absolute minimum.

That wouldn't be hard to fetch considering Beckham's talents, and it would hardly be surprising if someone would give up a mid- or late first-round pick for Odell. 

In other words, yes, the Giants could absolutely be shopping Beckham and yes there absolutely could be a deal that gets done sometime in the next week. The modern NFL does not preclude teams from trading star players with big cap numbers, as we just witnessed. Beckham could be the next diva wide receiver on the move.